Volusia County Teen Doused with Gasoline and Burned – Legal Rights and Responsibilities

The Associated Press reported that a Volusia County 17 year old was doused with gasoline and severely burned at a bonfire. The brief news story reported that it was an accident. Bonfires take place at various functions in Florida and other places. Once the bonfire is set, it is important for the bonfire to be properly monitored and supervised so that nobody is injured or burned from the bonfire or any of the materials that go in or come out of a bonfire. You can read about this story at Volusia County, Florida Teenager Burned After Being Doused with Gasoline.

The burn injuries of this Volusia County teen raises many questions that would play a part in the legal responsibility for the burn related injuries and related medical expenses in bills. In particular, as a Florida child injury lawyer, the following legal questions / issues come to mind:

Who was the owner of the property where the bonfire took place?

Who set up the bonfire?

Who was responsible for the monitoring of the bonfire once it was set?

Who was monitoring the bonfire at the time of the incident?

How did the incident take place?

What was the response to the injury?

What first aid was available?

Hopefully, the teenager will receive top level medical care to attend to the burns that she sustained as a result of being doused with gasoline. Cases involving scarring are particularly troublesome for child as the injuries can last a lifetime and can sometimes affect dating, social interaction, high school, college, and employment.